In the field of optical fiber-based communication, there is an increasing interest in the use of large mode area fibers, particularly associated with the fabrication of fiber-based optical amplifiers and the like, since large mode area fibers are known to overcome various nonlinear impairments, such as Raman and Brillouin scattering. The use of large mode area fibers, however, has been found to increase the presence of other fiber-related sensitivities such as macrobend losses, inter-mode coupling and sensitivities to nonuniformities in the fiber's refractive index profile.
There have been at least two different approaches in the prior art to minimize bend-induced losses in optical fiber. In one approach, essentially a mechanical approach, rod-like fibers are utilized that are extremely bend resistant. By forcing the fibers to remain essentially linear, the bend-induced loss can be significantly reduced. However, in most “field” applications of such fibers, there is a need to bend, even spool, such fibers. Therefore, restricting the physical ability of the fiber to bend is considered to be an impractical solution. The other approach is associated with determining a priori a fixed bend loss by defining the specific “spooling” to be used, and then always utilizing the fiber in accordance with the specified spooling radius (and number of turns). Again, this approach is considered to limit the various applications of large area fibers, as well as limit modifications in the field implementations and variations in the use of such fibers.
While these and other designs take into account the bend-induced losses of the fiber mode, the issue of bend-induced distortion remains neglected—specifically, distortion that includes bend-induced reduced effective area. In previous conventional applications using more conventional core dimensions, such mode distortions had minimal impact. However, in large mode fiber applications, the presence of bend-induced mode distortions generates a significant reduction in effective area.
Thus, a need remains in the art for providing a large mode area fiber whose effective area is not seriously distorted as the fiber is subjected to bending in various applications.